Fang Chiye kept his gaze straight ahead and said in a low voice, “In the last six letters, I wrote to you as Fang Chiye. Every word was true.”

Su Rui coughed violently. Fang Chiye got out of the car, bought a bottle of herbal tea, and handed it to her.

Su Rui drank it all in one go, wiped her lips—making them look even redder—and asked, “Are you saying… we’re really in a relationship?”

Standing by the car door, Fang Chiye nodded slightly. “I’ve thought it through. If you think it’s not formal enough, I can submit a request to the organization and have them officially introduce us. Ours would be a military-civilian union, a dual-cadre family. We are quite a good match.”

Su Rui stared at him, hoping he wasn’t joking.

How could someone with such sexy thin lips say something as dull as “quite a good match”?

The male lead and a cannon fodder female supporting character were a good match?

Seeing her remain silent, still in disbelief, Fang Chiye chuckled and said, “I can give you some time to process this.”

Su Rui did need time to process it. Grateful, she said, “Thank you. One of these days, I’ll—”

Fang Chiye pointed to a chicken soup restaurant not far away and said, “Just tell me your answer after we finish the chicken soup.”

Su Rui: “…”

Alright then.

Su Rui followed Fang Chiye toward the chicken soup restaurant. Along the way, she thought that if she were to date Fang Chiye, she would be the one gaining the most out of it. Moreover, from what she knew about Fang Chiye, he was a persistent and loyal man. There was no way he would ever betray, abuse, or discriminate against her.

Fang Chiye lifted the curtain, waiting for Su Rui to step inside first. Then, he led her to a seat by the window.

The two of them getting out of the jeep had already drawn enough attention. Now that they had entered the restaurant, the sight of a handsome man and a beautiful woman together made the waiters and customers glance their way repeatedly.

The waiter in charge of their section came over to take their order. Fang Chiye noticed that Su Rui seemed distracted, so he ordered a bowl of glutinous rice chicken soup, a plate of spicy diced chicken, and tiger skin chicken feet. Lastly, he added a bowl of shredded chicken noodle soup.

The waiter reminded them, “Comrades, this might be too much food. Should I take one dish off the order?”

Fang Chiye said, “We can finish it all. Please serve everything.”

Su Rui watched him silently and suddenly smiled.

Fang Chiye turned his head. Seeing her resting her chin on her hands with a playful grin, he also smiled. “You’ve recovered from the shock this quickly?”

Su Rui replied honestly, “Actually, this is considered slow. I should have agreed the moment you said it.”

Fang Chiye feigned ignorance. “Agreed to what?”

Su Rui rubbed her fingers against the table surface, feeling a bit shy.

Fang Chiye lowered his voice, looking straight into her eyes. “Say it while looking at me.”

Su Rui raised her head and said, “You haven’t even confessed to me yet.”

Fang Chiye chuckled and said, “Comrade Su Rui, I genuinely like you. I’m deeply attracted to you. Please continue being in a relationship with me. Don’t just walk away from this, alright?”

The first part sounded nice, but why did the latter part sound off?

The waiter pouring their tea suddenly placed the cup heavily in front of Su Rui, as if witnessing the greatest scumbag of the century.

How could such a dignified, extraordinary high-ranking officer lower himself to say something like this? Was this female comrade made of stone?

Su Rui looked up in surprise, only to see the waiter glaring at her.

“…”

This person sure was nosy.

Fang Chiye calmly repositioned the teacup and said to the waiter, “Thank you, comrade. We won’t need any more service.”

After the waiter left, Su Rui looked up at Fang Chiye and said, “Honestly, I do like you too. But our families are worlds apart.”

Fang Chiye said, “That’s feudal thinking. In modern times, marriage is about two young people coming together. Family background doesn’t matter—what matters is whether both people truly want to be together.”

Su Rui didn’t think she was heartless. She patted her chest and said, “No problem. If you ever argue with my dad, I’ll stand by reason, not by family.”

Fang Chiye was puzzled. “Why would I argue with Uncle?”

Su Rui said, “Oh, even teeth bite the lips sometimes. The longer you spend time together, the more things can happen. I’m just saying it in advance.”

Fang Chiye didn’t think too much about it and simply nodded. “I don’t need people to indulge me unconditionally.”

So sensible?

Su Rui was satisfied, extremely satisfied.

When the dishes were served, the waiter from earlier was indeed nowhere to be seen.

As a partner, Fang Chiye was considerate and attentive. Throughout the entire meal, he didn’t let Su Rui serve herself even once.

Su Rui ate comfortably, and her mood was even better.

After paying the bill, Fang Chiye returned and saw the little girl holding a tiger skin chicken claw in her mouth, spitting out the tiny bones one by one. He chuckled and said, “Didn’t you say you were full?”

Su Rui truly couldn’t eat anymore. Halfway through, she had just been watching Fang Chiye eat.

But chicken claws didn’t take up much space in the stomach. A small plate had only five pieces and cost a whole yuan and a half. She figured she might as well finish them here before leaving.

Fang Chiye sat across from her, watching her spit out bones like a little rascal. Thinking about how he would be heading back to the army after sending her home and wouldn’t see her again for another seven or eight days, he casually found a topic to talk about. “When did you start liking me?”

Su Rui spat out a small bone and blurted out, “I thought you were pretty good back at the wooden cabin.”

Fang Chiye’s lips curled into a teasing smile. “Were you peeking at me?”

Su Rui nearly choked herself to death. She coughed violently and took a few sips of the tea Fang Chiye handed her before saying, “Don’t talk nonsense. It was that night when you carried me up the steps. I thought you were quite reliable. That’s all.”

Fang Chiye smiled. “That’s really all?”

Su Rui’s little face turned slightly yellow as she nodded furiously.

On the way back, Fang Chiye parked the jeep a little distance from the village entrance.

Su Rui watched as he took out a black velvet box from the glove compartment. It looked high-end, and as he opened it, a faint fragrance wafted out, much better than the floral water scent on shoe insoles.

Fang Chiye opened the box to reveal a sleek, elegant women’s wristwatch. “This is a gift for you. It’ll make checking the time at work easier.”

Normally, Su Rui had to rely on either the big wall clock in the main house or the radio to estimate the time. She had enough money to buy a watch but was reluctant to spend it—it was too expensive.

Seeing that she wanted to refuse, Fang Chiye gently took her wrist and put the watch on for her. “I hope I can be with you every minute and every second.”

The sudden heartfelt words made Su Rui’s heart skip a few beats.

Fang Chiye’s hand was still on her wrist. Su Rui gritted her teeth and grabbed his large hand, rubbing it hard to feel the bones and muscles beneath his skin. “Don’t worry. I’ll think about you every minute and every second.”

Fang Chiye chuckled. “Feels like you’re taking advantage of me.”

Su Rui said, “Before, I could only see but not touch. Now that I have the chance, of course, I have to make the most of it.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she realized she had slipped up.

She instinctively tried to let go, but Fang Chiye caught her wrist instead.

Su Rui looked at him in shock. Fang Chiye gazed at her and said, “Don’t even think about running.”

Lowering her head, Su Rui’s heart pounded wildly. She fidgeted and murmured, “I wasn’t planning to run.”

Fang Chiye simply laughed. He laughed for a while before saying, “Next time, I’ll wear casual clothes. No buttons, so it’ll be easier for you to touch.”

In the distance, Su Hongpei was chatting with Sister Zhao when she saw Su Rui get out of the jeep, her steps unsteady and her face flushed red.

She turned to Sister Zhao and said, “I’ll bring her the homestead documents now. Thank you for looking out for her.”

Sister Zhao glanced at the jeep in the distance and nodded with a smile. “It’s nothing.”

“Sister Zhao, do you have something to talk to me about?” Su Rui walked towards Su Hongpei, put the back of her hand against her face, and whispered, “What do you want to talk to me about?”

Su Hongpei teased, “Nothing like what happened with Captain Fang.”

Su Rui was shocked. “You know?”

Su Hongpei was confused. “Know what?”

Su Rui looked around, then pulled Su Hongpei behind the big banyan tree at the village entrance and whispered for a long time. Su Hongpei’s mouth fell open in shock. “It’s actually Captain Fang? You two are really dating? My god, this is amazing.”

Su Rui rolled up her sleeve to show off her new watch, her expression a mix of embarrassment and pride. “He gave it to me. I said I didn’t want it, but he insisted.”

Su Hongpei pinched Su Rui’s little face. “Let me see how thick your skin has gotten.”

Su Rui clung to Su Hongpei’s arm, resting her chin on her shoulder as she sighed. “I never expected it to be Fang Chiye. Think about it—Fang Chiye, Ye Chifang—how did we not see it coming?”

Su Hongpei let go of her, took a few steps forward, and hesitated as she touched the banyan tree’s trunk. “I… I’ve been holding something in for a long time and want to tell you.”

Su Rui walked behind her and declared confidently, “Big Sister, if you need to borrow money, I’ll lend it to you for sure!”

Su Hongpei burst into laughter. Seeing Su Rui’s generous expression, she almost lost her composure. She took Su Rui’s hand, touching the delicate and expensive watch, and said, “Do you remember that first letter? The one I mailed out?”

Of course, Su Rui remembered. That was the day Su Chang’e even forced her to slip a photo inside. She had spent a fortune on that photo, planning to use it to fool her future husband.

“I even wondered if Su Chang’e had really introduced me to a military officer,” Su Rui said, half-laughing. “Turns out everything went wrong from the very start.”

Su Hongpei sighed helplessly. “I only found out later that your photo ended up at their base. Chen Haiyan mentioned it to me once. I thought the person writing to you would be an ordinary officer. You know, even a regular officer would be a high match for us. Who could have guessed—”

“Who could have guessed that your little sister is so charming that she landed the great Captain Fang, right?” Su Rui giggled, then turned to her and asked, “Then do you know who Su Chang’e was corresponding with? Was it really a convict?”

This was exactly what had been troubling Su Hongpei lately. She pulled Su Rui to sit by the flowerbed and handed her a file. “Sister Zhao asked me to give you this homestead document. The location is quite good. It seems like they specifically arranged for you to be near the farmland as a special consideration.”

Su Rui opened the document and looked at it. “It’s close to Aimin Road and the village committee too. This really is a great spot.”

Su Hongpei advised, “Since you already have a homestead, I suggest you build your house as soon as possible and hurry back to split from the family.”

Su Rui asked, “Big Sister, are you hiding something from me? Why are you so eager for me to separate?”

Su Hongpei sighed and said, “I’m afraid you’ll get burned in the process. You have no real bond with them anyway, so the sooner you leave, the better. Besides, you’re already an adult. No one will criticize you for living independently. If you leave before they have time to stop you, the cleaner the break, the better.”

Su Rui understood what Su Hongpei meant. Once Su Hongpei and Su Chang’e found out that their intended partners had been switched, they would undoubtedly cause a huge scene. They might even try to drag Fang Chiye into the mess.

Su Rui hugged Su Hongpei tightly and said after a long while, “I understand, Big Sister. I have always treated you as my real sister. Just wait, I’ll go back and split from the family right away.”